Cracker Barrel cuts ribbon on 1st Delco store

Ridley Township Commissioner Patrick McMenamin dines with his wife, Christine ,at the pre-opening preview celebration of the new Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, on South Stewart Avenue in Ridley Township. Invited guests were served a breakfast sampler to give them a taste of what’s to come Monday when the restaurant officially opens to the public.
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Ray Yoder, 81, drove 15 hours with his wife Wilma from their home in Goshen, Indiana to be at the grand opening celebration of the Ridley Cracker Barrel Old Country Store. The road trip brought their grand total up to 647 of Cracker Barrel locations visited.
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RIDLEY TOWNSHIP >> The Cracker Barrel Era has arrived in Delco.

Local dignitaries and Cracker Barrel team members stood in front of the iconic porch full of rocking chairs Friday morning to cut the official grand opening ribbon on Delaware County’s first-ever Cracker Barrel Old Country Store. The opening in Ridley Township marks Cracker Barrel’s 647th location across 44 states, and its 24th location in Pennsylvania. Cracker Barrel also has nearby stores in Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania and Pennsville, New Jersey.

Despite the chilly early morning temperatures, the mood was warm and friendly inside, as about 100 invited guests of the pre-opening celebration filed in at 8 a.m. to taste the first breakfasts served at the new location. The restaurant will open to the public on Mon., Nov. 13 at 6 a.m.

Cracker Barrel trainers, management and staff joined local business and community leaders at the morning preview event Friday. Invited guests were served a breakfast sampler to give them a taste of what’s to come next week when the restaurant is officially open.

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Among the guests who got a sneak peek of the new Cracker Barrel were Ray and Wilma Yoder, who traveled 15 hours from their home in Goshen, Indiana, to be at the grand opening. The couple will now be able to say that they’ve been to all 647 Cracker Barrel locations. The Yoders have been enjoying meals at Cracker Barrel for over half a century and they receive a celebrity-like reception at the restaurants’ grand openings.

Dressed in his signature cowboy hat, 81-year-old Ray Yoder posed for photos with guests while he explained why he and his wife travel across the states to visit every single Cracker Barrel.

“Mainly we go, because we just love Cracker Barrel,” the restaurant’s most loyal customer said with a grin. “Right now, we can still keep up with Cracker Barrel’s expansion, but later we may need a chauffeur to take us when we can’t drive anymore..”

The new Ridley location has hired about 200 new employees. Ridley general manager Gregory Tucker is excited to be at the helm of the new restaurant, Formerly a manager at Bertucci’s and Applebees, the general manager who grew up in Broomall, and currently lives in Montgomery County, said Cracker Barrel is “the most amazing” company with which he has ever worked..

“This place is literally a home away from home,” Tucker shared. “The company and its people are warm and genuine and Cracker Barrel really gives anyone who works here an opportunity to grow. We really want to thank Delaware County for being so welcoming to us and including our Cracker Barrel family into the community here..”

Tucker said the Ridley store is unique because it was built and designed in the restaurant’s newer style. The brand new design of the 10,000-square-foot building and front porch will seat 180 guests in two dining rooms, compared to the three dining rooms in most other locations. Ridley’s design is more open and spacious, with updated colors, Tucker said. “Even our store design is different than the others, with the cash register on the opposite side.”

Assistant manager Matt Wickel of Glassboro, N.J., has worked for Cracker Barrel for more than two years. He transferred to the Ridley location from the Pennsville store.

“Cracker Barrel is family-themed through and through,” Wickel said. “They have very high standards and they have commitment to their customers. They don’t just talk about how things should be, they practice what they preach. Our staff is highly trained and we’re ready to meet our customers on Monday – we are prepared!”

Although the Country Store retail outlet will not be open until Monday, guests on Friday milled through, looking at the unusual merchandise, some remarking that they will return to purchase gifts for the holidays. Guests also perused several walls in the store that are dedicated to celebrating the local community, including authentic artifacts that pay homage to the Philadelphia Flyers, the Pennsylvania Railroad, and Philadelphia’s rich history.

Server Angela Libertini of Havertown, who previously worked at the Yard House in King of Prussia, explained why she is excited to have the new job at the local Cracker Barrel Old Country Store.

“This is really a great family place to work,” Libertini said, as she balanced dishes and topped off coffee cups on customers’ tables. “I really wanted to work here – it’s awesome. There’s a real team atmosphere here and I like that a lot.”

Server Sharon Muzirwa of Ridley Township who said she previously worked at Chick-fil, stated that she trained a full two weeks for the new job at Cracker Barrel.

Lois Hall of Madison, Ga., a member of Cracker Barrel’s Operations Training Team, said she arrived at the Ridley location on Oct. 27 and will stay until Nov. 27 to be sure that the entire Ridley team is highly skilled and trained.

“At Cracker Barrel, we drill our practices to make sure everything is just perfect,” she smiled. “We have constant training because we want every employee to meet the Cracker Barrel high standard.”

Beginning on Monday, the Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, at 125 S. Stewart Ave. in Ridley Township, will be open seven days a week from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., Sunday through Thursday and from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m., Friday and Saturday, 364 days a year, only closed for Christmas day.